1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to systems for determining the location of vehicles, and more particularly to a system for determining vehicle locations that utilizes a radio frequency identification (RFID) system. The system is particularly adapted for use in defining the position of an aircraft on an airport surface movement area.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pilots who taxi aircraft especially in large, unfamiliar airports have to rely on signage and airport diagrams to locate the appropriate taxiways, aprons and runways. It would be desirable for a pilot to determine their position on the airport surface.
The FAA defines a runway incursion as “any occurrence in the airport runway environment involving an aircraft, vehicle, person, or object on the ground that creates a collision hazard or results in a loss of required separation with an aircraft taking off, intending to take off, landing, or intending to land.” The FAA has identified the reduction in risk of runway incursions as one of the Performance Targets in its Portfolio of Goals for FY 2006. Historical records for the past several years indicate approximately 300 runway incursion incidents per year with pilot deviations accounting for more than half of the total. Many of these incidents are due to pilots' lack of awareness of their position on the airport surface.
RFID tags are normally used to track data relating to objects to which they have been affixed. These tags are often used in the automatic data identification industry, such as inventory control.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,381,541, entitled “Airplane Ground Location Methods and Systems,” issued to L. R. Sadler, discloses use of a ground location evaluator that includes one or more interrogators. Individual interrogators are configured to receive wireless communication from multiple airplanes that are located on the ground at an airfield. Multiple location transmitters or transceivers are provided and each is mounted on an airplane. Individual location transmitters or transceivers are configured to wirelessly communicate with the one or more interrogators. The ground location evaluator is configured to process the wireless communication to ascertain the location of communicating airplanes and responsive thereto and determine whether there is a likelihood of a runway incursion.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,690,295, entitled “System For Determining the Position of Vehicles at an Airport,” issued to R. G. De Boer, discloses a device for determining the position of an aircraft at an airport, that includes a plurality of sensors for detecting at least one radio signal originating from a vehicle, in which the plurality of sensors are preferably positioned at regular intervals from one another on parts of the airport which are accessible to the vehicle. The present device is preferably used for detecting the position of an aircraft on the runway system of an airport. The sensors are preferably fitted in light positions of runway lighting provided at the airport on taxiways, take-off and landing runways and on platforms. The signal originating from a radio altimeter of an aircraft is preferably used as the radio signal.